Each weekend we try and list at least 1 item on our local Facebook 24 hour bidding site. 80% of what we have listed has sold, and over half of those items have gone higher than our starting bid. To date we have raised $90 towards our weekend away fund which was going to our weekend in Uclulet/Tofino but as that is fully funded now it will go to another future weekend away. These are the items I posted this weekend. Empty gift baskets and unused citronella candles. I had bought 4 packages of these candles back in Alberta where they were needed for the monster mosquitoes. Here, our mosquitoes seem to be a much quieter variety rarely biting us. Perhaps I no longer taste good but since these are just taking up space now these are going to be sold off. If they don't sell these items will be put in the crawl space until our next garage sale (we have lots of space down there, entire length of our home).
I have always thought of myself as a minimalist as seem to have way less "stuff" than others and rarely get attached to it so find it easy to purge, except since I keep finding stuff to sell it seems I am not such a minimalist after all.
Yes, it takes a little bit of work to keep this selling up, but the end benefit is a weekend that costs us very little/nothing out of our current paychecks, and keeps our home organized and clutter-free. Right now there are no garage sales in the area so the selling seems to be steady but I will stop once garage sales start up. I have also determined that Saturday morning is the very best time to list stuff with hope of getting the most views/bids with ending time on Sunday. People like to shop in their jammies with their coffee or at least that is the hope.
How do you rid yourself of excess "stuff"?
I am currently getting rid of 10 items a week. I wait until I have a couple of weeks worth boxed than take it to the Salvation Army drop off. We also have a community "free" fb page and I have occasionally listed things as free. Amazingly some of the people who respond want me to take their free item to their house. It just doesn't work that way for me.
ReplyDeleteI have run into that before too - giving you a perfectly good item and you expect me to bring it to you too? You wonder about people's sense of entitlement.
DeleteI have a LOT to get rid of and have a yard sale planned for June. Whatever doesn't get sold will go to Goodwill. I brought back 2 truck loads from the house I had in PEI and then when I thought I wanted a trailer I purchased some things for it. I don't think I'm a minimalist but truly look forward to getting the clutter from these other places GONE!
ReplyDeleteJune is a good time for garage sales. Clutter can be such a drag.
DeleteWhen we got rid of our house, we got rid of the ability to accumulate excess "stuff"!
ReplyDeleteAs George Carlin said, a house is simply a place to keep your "stuff". Google George Carlin and "stuff" on youtube. Hilarious.
www.travelwithkevinandruth.com
Exactly. Whenever you guys get a regular permanent home again (if ever) you two would probably be happy in a studio apartment :)
DeleteI'm married to the packrattiest of packrats, but I have a plan...
ReplyDelete? What's the plan? A match tee hee! My Mom was so much a packrat, still is but I downsized most of it. She has an extreme love for magaznes so I try and pack them away from her place any chance I get.
DeleteMy Dad had enough stuff to fill 3 houses!!! Today under the pretense of a roadtrip we took 2 boxes of books, 4 boxes of kitchen doodads and a bag full of pots and pans to Ottawa, On. Garage sale seasons is still pretty far here so I need to get rid of things now!!! But I am sure we will have more than enough for a garage sale!
ReplyDeleteAs for us? We always have an empty box ready to welcome unwanted things?
Yikes - 3 houses! You have lots of time to work your way through it. Good idea to spread the love around though.
DeleteHard to get rid of things without a yard for a yard sale, and managing selling online is hard for me (did it once with Mom's things when they wouldn't let me have an estate sale in her condo). I usually donate what I don't need and let the Hospital Economy shop make the money to invest in our heath system. - Margy
ReplyDeleteThat's a very good idea and what doesn't sell is definitely going to our hospital thrift store - my favorite one!
DeleteCar booting for us, we like the social side of selling as much as the financial benefits. xxx
ReplyDeleteWe don't have car boots here or I would totally do that too - like the social aspect as well. Only garage sales.
DeleteWe got rid of a lot when we moved, but we still have a bunch. With the kids on weekends, they have to go through & find 10 things to: recycle, toss, or donate. Every weekend. Most weekends we find more. When you have them bringing in all of their crazy school work, cute "rocks", they grow out of clothes, etc.
ReplyDeleteI cleaned out most of the house over the holidays, but the garage is my nemesis. M is quite a hoarder.
Hubby is not a hoarder but does have trouble letting go of stuff. One rule I have always had is that we need to be able to park both vehicles in the garage - so far so good.
DeleteWe have a company called Rhea Lanas. They have a big sale for one week twice a year. you just price the items and you bring them to where the sale is being held and you get 70% of the asking price and Rhea Lanas gets 30%. It is way easier than a garage sale and you don't have to be there haggling over a quarter. For bigger ticket items, I sell them on Craigslist, Not sure you have craigslist in Canada. I make a lot of money off of Craigslist. Then of course, I donate, but that is hard because I don't want to see my stuff at any of the thrift shops I go to...and I go to all of them around here!
ReplyDeleteI love that idea. We do have craigslist but the flakes that call you and never show up drive me crazy. The facebook site has pretty strict rules or they remove you from the group so I like that and so far have been 100% satisfied after selling about 10 items and buying 2.
DeleteI wouldn't have thought of you as a minimalist. Funny how we see ourselves. Me? I'm a minimalist-wanna-be.
ReplyDeleteI probably would be a much better minimalist if I was single, at one time lived in an over a garage apartment of 250 sq foot on the ocean. I don't get easily attached to stuff so can let go of it. I could actually be a vagabond traveling the world out of a suitcase, as long as I could have a camera and a laptop.
DeleteI admire you for ferreting out things out to sell. Well done.
ReplyDeleteLife seems to be a constant purge, doesn't it?
DeleteHow nice to have a facebook bidding site! I could certainly get rid of a few items. I have found that clutter is sneaking up on me!
ReplyDeleteI love the facebook site as you have to have been on facebook over a year and if you do not conform to the rules they kick you out. It seems to work much better than listing items on Craigslist where every nut job calls you then never shows up.
DeleteSo can I hire you to sort my family? I think they are the problem!! And that is a brilliant tip about listing Saturdays!!!!
ReplyDelete